ah, cell phones ......

check it ----- I actually found an example of where cell phones are used for data collection:

"Wildlife researchers in Kenya and South Africa have put no-frills cell phones in weatherproof cases on a collar that goes around an elephant's neck. The phone sends a message every hour, revealing the animal's whereabouts.
It cuts the cost of tracking wildlife by up to 60 percent, said Professor Wouter van Hoven of the University of Pretoria's Center for Wildlife Management.
"You don't have to walk around the bush searching for the animals," he says. "I have sat around in Europe and was able to monitor animals in the mountains using a cell phone that had access to the Internet."

HOWEVER --- .... what's the difference between that, and just a regular tracking device like they've been using for years?

read the whole article at
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/ptech/10/17/africa.goes.cellular.ap/index.html